As the country starts to open more and more, some of us are eager to get life back to normal while some of us are scared of it being too soon. Ultimately our own personal opinions do not matter in regards to change in policies from the state which can lead to a lot of stress and anxiety for everyone right now. Whether you are concerned with government overreach, loss of personal freedom, contamination from the virus, financial concerns, concerns for loved ones, we all have more than one major thing we are scared of right now. Even with things slowly opening the concerns are there, if not growing. Will we have to lockdown again? Why are we opening with no cure? Will my work return to normal? We have so many sides of our emotions and lives right now being attacked that it can be hard to focus. Just this week I really started to feel the effects of quarantine. I felt listless and uninspired. While previously I had found projects and work to excite me, I simply wasn't in the mood this week. I attributed it to the unknowing. Unknowing is a very fearful thing for me and I am sure for many reading this. But ultimately we never know anything. We assume we will wake up tomorrow. We assume our job will be there until we want another one. We assume our loved ones will not suddenly vanish. Ultimately none of this is promised to us. However, we have the benefit of experience and this has taught us that these things seem to remain pretty steadfast. Even if one disappears, not all of them will at the same time. Now, that assumption is a little broken but the world hasn't actually changed that much. So today for our mindfulness exercise we are going to focus on controlling the fear of the unknown.
To begin, go to your favorite spot for your meditations and begin your mindful breathing, being sure to check out our previous articles here if you are unfamiliar with mindfulness and breathing exercises. Start with your mindful breaths and bring yourself into the moment. Focus on how the breath is affecting your body, feel your lungs expanding and contracting, feel the way the air moves through your nostrils and the way your body settles into your seating position. Start scanning your body looking for areas of tension or pain. Historically, have these areas of tension related to any emotional reactions for you? Could these pains be indications of emotional issues you are experiencing? Make note of these observations as you move on. Now that you are completely in the moment, start to register how you are feeling emotionally? What is your mood right now as the country reopens? Are you hopeful, fearful, excited, nervous, a combination of all of these things? Be honest with your emotions; no emotion is wrong and you are not a weak or strong person because you are or are not feeling anything. If it helps, write down all the emotions you are feeling with the opening of the country after covid-19 and let yourself expand on the reasons why you are feeling this way. Remember, it is possible to feel many contradicting things at once. Perhaps you are excited to return to work but also nervous of infection, these emotions are valid and ok. Note these exercises can be used in any situation where you are feeling fearful of the unknown, not just covid-19 related. If you are using this exercise after the reopening just use the same prompts for whatever issue you are working through.
As you write through the emotions you are feeling and linking them back to the why, look for trends between them. Oftentimes our fears are linked to one or two core fears but they manifest themselves in many facets of our lives in different and sometimes contradictory ways. The most famous of these being the fear of being abandoned. It can make a person cold and distant to others or cause them to abandon others first to avoid being the one being left. If you are lucky enough to find one or two main fears as the base of your issues, write these root fears down for further meditation. We will not pretend that you are going to work through your fears in one session. If you are unable to find a couple of root fears or maybe the fear of the unknown is just as mysterious as the fear, that is ok too. We can work with this. Take this fear and hold it in your mind. Knowing that fear is not a sign of weakness. What does the fear feel like, does it limit you? If so, how does it limit you? What are the reactions in your body? Changes in temperature, agitation? Surrender yourself to this emotion, knowing that it doesn't control you to feel it. Breathe in and out slowly letting your body react to the fear. If your body wants a different position, or if you want to walk or cry, all of these things are ok. Allow them to happen in a forgiving atmosphere. Hold the emotion of fear for as long as you feel and when you are ready, thank the emotion and send it away.
Now give yourself a few deep cleansing breaths. With each breath let your body fill with cleansing golden light and fill with hope. Know that we never know the future, nothing is ever promised to us, yet we have gotten this far. You are exactly where you are supposed to be and know just as much about the future as you always have. Continue to breathe in the light of hope. There is always hope, the future is always unknown and we always have hope for the future.
Reach out to us at info@bullionite.com with your questions and comments.